The medicinal mushroom Ganoderma lucidum has been used for a long time in China to prevent and treat various human diseases such as bronchitis, hepatitis, hypertension, tumorigenic diseases, immunological disorders and as an ingredient in skin creams. Ancient Chinese medical scholars suggested that Ganoderma lucidum could strengthen body resistance and consolidate the constitution of patients.
The main ingredients in the various Ganoderma products that lead to the bioactivity are beta glucans. These are part of the cell wall and are traditionally isolated in an extraction process. Unfortunately, the extraction process harms the bioactivity of the beta glucan and most applications are forced to use Ganoderma products in the form of a powder from the dried mushroom body. However, the beta glucan is not easily released from the powder so that it can be absorbed in the body and the biological efficacy of most Ganoderma-based products is affected by this.
The product according to the present invention can be produced in a production process using the mycelium of a mushroom such as Ganoderma lucidum. The production process encourages the growing mycelium to export bioactive compounds such as beta glucans into the surrounding liquid. Thus, the beta glucan is soluble and easily absorbed. More importantly, the production process allows the majority (such as more than 80%, more than 90% or more than 95%) or all of the beta glucan to retain its triple helix structure which is required for maintain a very high bioactive efficacy.